This week, forgoing the usual Sunday Pages news items, I’m going to take a quick look at the meagre purchases I made at yesterday’s Camden Comics mini-Festival, Low Energy Day. I’ll leave it to the official site to explain the idea, but needless to say it’s a frankly brilliant one and my only regret is that I haven’t made it to the Camden Comics Stall sooner. Bear in mine, I was feeling pretty wiped out after finishing moving house that morning, so with just enough strength to drag myself from Northfields to Camden, I didn’t have much time to hang around and check out everyone, nor could I afford to – there are around a hundred different exhibitors all with their own body of work, so what I chose to purchase here is in no way an indicator of quality, it’s just the books I bought on the day. Reviews and more below the cut! (continue reading…)

As the only one of Marvel’s “Tsunami” marketing exercise to make it out alive, Runaways has struggled for popularity at the best of times. Following creator Brian K. Vaughan’s departure, the future of the series was more uncertain than ever, and a 6-issue run by Joss Whedon combined the writer’s stratospheric name power with the usual delays associated with him.

Now, for whatever reason, Runaways returns not with #31 of Volume 2, but for #1 of Volume 3. Presumably the hope is that the constant critical buzz surrounding the series will translate to increasing popularity at the start of each subsequent volume. Moore is a writer ideally-placed to handle the characters, and while he might not have the current popularity of Whedon or Vaughan, there’s no denying that he’s a strong writer with the required ability and experience to keep the title gaining profile the old-fashioned way.

Moore’s story has the kids returning to LA and finding a new Pride base. The realities of being kids on the run are addressed, as Chase looks for employment while the rest of the gang heads out for a spot of retail therapy. Unfortunately, it’s all interrupted when aliens come looking for Karolina. The story plays well to the cast, and continues developing the themes that Runaways has been built on. Ramos’ artwork is well-suited for the youthful cast, and while he’s a polarising figure, it’s hard to argue with his energy – every panel is crammed full of action and expression.

Whedon and Ryan’s delays do appear to have caused some problems for the relaunch. It’s very hard to say for certain, but it feels almost as if Moore was writing this well before the conclusion to Whedon’s story was known – witness Klara’s apparent retroactive insertion into some panels, and the cover – though to be fair that may have been a spoiler prevention measure. If nothing else, her personality is far removed from the timid young girl we saw her introduced as, an alteration for which Moore and Ramos equally share the burden. Elsewhere, the revelation that Xavin’s default form is now “female” must have been entirely missed by Moore and Ramos, though it could be that it hadn’t actually been decided at the time of writing.

Despite the new team and new #1, Runaways still feels like the same comic it’s always been, and while the  long-term effects of the creative change remain to be seen, it’s off to a promising start. Whether the story is likely to keep any new readers the numbering attracted is debatable, but certainly old readers will find themselves right at home with the new volume.

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New Avengers, as a series, has become both incredibly rewarding and rather frustrating of late. During the whole Secret Invasion crossover, it’s been the main place to find answers to the myriad questions of how the Skrull invasion was achieved. As a result, we have issues like this – a brilliant issue of Fantastic Four, in which a few of the “Illuminati” make guest appearances, while the wider cast of New Avengers goes utterly unacknowledged. It’s enough to make you angry.

Except that it doesn’t. By resolving the burning questions behind what can only be described as the slowest-paced crossover ever written – and doing so in a satisfying, single-issue chunk, New Avengers benefits massively from Secret Invasion. The idea of two separate Avengers titles has been all but abandoned during this period, but of the two, New Avengers is just about delivering the better stories.

In this issue, we find ourselves reading about a clone of Reed Richards, and it’s revealed how the Skrulls managed to improve their ability to hide. Even though we know we’re reading about a bio-duplicate, readers will really understand Reed Richard’s turmoil as if it was the real one. Clones with all the memories of the original are fairly dubious pseudo-science at the best of times, but it fits with the Skrull capabilities already established in Secret Invasion, and it brilliantly uses the Skrull’s inherent sneakiness to achieve their aims – they’re not smart enough to invent the technology they need, but they’re more than crafty enough to trick someone else into doing it for them.

Tan’s artwork falls somewhere between Marvel’s current realist house-style and Yu’s scratchier, looser look, with a little Jim Lee mixed in. A run on X-Men obviously rubbed off on Tan, because he draws a great Professor Xavier, though in general only Reed’s interrogation scenes work as well as one suspects he’s capable of.

Once again, Bendis delivers another must-read piece of the Secret Invasion puzzle, and delivers a great Fantastic Four story that makes the most of the chance to push Reed in directions that the real one can’t go. Just try not to think about what the series title on the cover is and you’ll get along with it nicely.

Every Wednesday we take turns to delve into our trusty longboxes, pluck out a dusty back issue, and give you our thoughts. We’ll also try and place it in the context of the time it was originally published.

Our occasional trip through DC crossoverville now brings us to Millennium, the 1987/88 event that has bafflingly recently been collected in trade form (while the far superior likes of Armageddon 2001 are spoken of in the same breath as Marvel’s Clone Saga). Before DC had hit upon the technique of setting these annual crossovers’ in the respective books’ annuals, with individual tales that were largely standalone but at least followed the theme of the crossover, such events would tend to simply weave their entire narrative through a limited miniseries and various spin-off books. It’s not a hugely satisfying way of doing things, especially when the story is as weak as this (basically, the Manhunters are a bunch of red robotty things created by the Guardians of the Universe as a first attempt to run an “intergalactic police force” – the second attempt being the Green Lantern Corps. Manhunters now attacking the Guardians as well as Earth, yadda yadda yadda, secret sleeper agents planted among the supporting cast of various DC books in a Secret Invasionish kind of way, etc. etc.).

But as with all crossovers, it’s not like you can’t get decent issues out of it, depending on the creative teams at their time. Giffen, deMatteis and Maguire were at the absolute height of their Justice League powers at this point, and the curious thing about this issue – which sees a group of heroes, some of whom are current JL members, some former, mounting an assault on the Manhunters’ homeworld – is that it gives us the opportunity to see how they would have coped had they been allowed to have A-list characters in their team (in addition to JLI members J’onn J’onnz and Captain Atom, the team here includes Superman, Hal Jordan and Hawkman/Hawkwoman).

And the answer is… very well, as it happens. In the absence of characters like Blue Beetle and Guy Gardner, there’s less in the way of laugh-out-loud, outright character comedy. But deMatteis’ dialogue still absolutely zings, and there are a lot of character moments to enjoy. Most notably, there’s an excellent portrayal of the relationship between the two Hawks (Shayera having a blast, Katar grumpily wondering “why everyone feels so compelled to make jokes all the time”), but there are great little lines dotted throughout. Superman gets played entirely straight, of course, but his earnestness is used playfully rather than being made fun of.

The other thing the issue is notable for is the introduction of probably Giffen/deMatteis’ most famous creation – the woefully underqualified, walking catastrophe of a Green Lantern known as G’Nort. Despite the fact that his design hadn’t really been nailed down yet – he’s more “furry bloke” than out-and-out “walking dog” – he’s great fun in his first two-page appearance, cheerfully telling Katma Tui (apropos of nothing) that “They don’t even have a john in here!”, while being saluted by Superman for his bravery in taking on the manhunters alone (”By the way… uh… what’s a manhunter?”). It also draws some great comedy out of the usually-strait-laced Jordan: “Do you really think it’s fair, calling him a yo-yo?” “Believe me, Superman – I’m being kind.”

Topping it all off, as ever in the early part of the JLI run, is Kevin Maguire’s excellent art. Right from the first time I read this – and we’re talking almost twenty years ago, here – it made me think what a great job he’d do on a main Superman title, as he gets the character spot-on with a very Christopher Reeve-esque interpretation. He and colourist Gene D’Angelo also cope well with the storytelling handicap of having to draw almost an entire issue against a yellow background (the Manhunters having built their homeworld specifically to defend against Green Lanterns).

Despite being hampered by the constraints of a slightly naff crossover, team JLI were still able to turn out great comics. If anything, it’s only a shame that they were only given some of these characters for one issue – although, of course, you’d never want to trade Beetle, Booster and Guy for anybody. Nowadays, though, this particular issue still stands up well – it’s a little jarring if you try to just read it in sequence with the rest of JLI, but as a part of Millennium itself, it was by far the standout moment.

Although the X-Men franchise managed to break it’s “Annual” habit in the first half of this decade, it’s recently discovered an even more debilitating addiction: specials. Barely a month goes by without Wolverine embarking on a forty-eight-page killing spree, or a supporting character seizing their moment in the sun. It’s difficult to see a reason for this approach other than the financial; if a story inspired by an X-book is interesting or moving, then it belongs in that title, not hived off as an additional purchase. The Divided We Stand epilogues to New X-Men should have served as a proper ending to that book, while the likes of X-Force: Ain’t No Dog are simply an attempt to wring a more regular revenue stream from a popular title slowed by its detailed art. There’s a simple rule of thumb here; if it isn’t written by a regular series writer, investigate carefully before purchasing. Thankfully, the names on the cover of this second X-Factor excursion mean it passes this test.

While her compatriots in the monthly title are facing the twin threats of a rampaging super-skrull and some shockingly poor artwork, Layla Miller remains in the distopian future glimpsed during Messiah Complex. After a short introduction set in an interment camp, the bulk of the story charts Miller’s journey across America, igniting a mutant rights uprising, almost accidentally, as she goes. All the stapes of a standard Days of Future Past comics world are found here; the children of present day characters, the shadow of a dark time ahead and an aged & mutilated present day hero living out his final days. Peter David prevents his tale from feeling clichéd, however, by actually rounding out this world from what was seen of it in last year’s crossover. We are shown people being able to live relatively normal lives, and an active debate in progress about the body politic.

What sells the storyline is David’s longevity as a writer. While the likes of Mike Carey would be left looking rather fan-ish if they revived some elements of the franchise, David’s use of ideas he was present for the gestation of somehow feels more acceptable, as he forges links between his previous X-Factor work and the title’s present incarnation. Besides, it’s always a pleasure to see David writing for Miller. A sharp break in tradition from the franchise’s Destiny/ Blindfold eccentric soothsayers, the teen feels both comfort and confinement from knowing how “stuff” will turn out, and there’s an interesting character moment when the latter overwhelms her, slightly increasing her credibility.

The story could quite easily just be a fun day out for Peter David with the character he’s made his own, but the emphasis the issue’s advance publicity placed on the Summers Rebellion elements suggests that the events here will mesh into the tapestry that the X-titles are becoming. Messiah Complex suggested that time travel will play a considerable part in the X-Men’s lives over the next few months, and it’s not hard to foresee the likes of Cable or Bishop having to pick up the pieces from the events here. Until that day, fortunately, this is one special that can stand on its own feet.

Although we’ve now reached the penultimate chapter of The Death of Captain America, Ed Brubaker’s intentions for the series are still something of a mystery. Elements from the writer’s entire run, even predating Steve Rogers’ shooting, are being called in, but an unexpected twist means that the conclusion of this epic may not be as definitive as many imagined.

The issue opens with Captain America and the Falcon on the trail of the broken Grand Director, when a tip-off from Dr Faustus puts them in a position to thwart the Red Skull’s plans with more precision than they expected. Like so many parts of this storyline, the mesmerist’s defection is a shock development that makes perfect sense when viewed in retrospect. Faustus’s errors have been slowly accumulating throughout the arc, and the physiatrist’s long-term health would not be guaranteed even if the Red Skull were to triumph. However, it’s unfortunate that this plot twist overshadows the issue. With Bucky and Sam already hot on A.I.M.’s trail, the information volunteered only slightly accelerates the plot, with the result that the writer is a little to obviously putting the moustachioed megalomaniac into storage for future use. Faustus could have slipped away unnoticed in the chaos that is undoubtedly in store next month, but presumably the page count for issue forty-two is already stretched to the limit…

Despite the hype behind events such as Secret Invasion and Final Crisis, the next issue of this book has been in the making for just as long, with the writer having to remind readers of old plot elements such as the Skull being present in the body of Lukin and the mysterious apparatus which he went to such pains to obtain from Dr Doom. However, the demands of the Marvel Universe, desperate to play with its literally shiny new toy, require a break in the narrative for Bucky to undertake a meet & greet exercise. In surrendering to the inevitable, Brubaker has set himself a very demanding test, as the entire four-year story now hinges on the revelation of the Skull’s actual plan and the purpose of the Doom-constructed device. It’s hard to see how it can unify all the elements we’ve been introduced to into a coherent agenda, but Brubaker’s plotting hasn’t disappointed so far. The writer’s rock-solid grip on the title has taken it into new territory, and it’s something of a relief to realise that the end of this particular saga won’t signal the end of his approach. Whether the slow progression of a multiple story strands is to your taste or not, it’s hard to think of another book like it.